The lions’ share of additions came from the 63 comments YOU added to the guide, so THANK YOU!

+1 Mention to Existing Gems and +1 or More Mentions for New Items
Some old standards got new mentions – the Nitrile gloves for example and just about any socket set. Harbor Freight clamps picked up over 10 more “gem” mentions.

Some new tools came out of the gate strong… they hadn’t been on the list before but turned out to be good performers based on user experience. The #93440 18 Volt 3/8″ Drill for example, came out of nowhere. So did the compressors, which really surprised me. The #47257 Harbor Freight 6″ Digital Caliper came from nowhere with 4 mentions, too.

#46309 18 Gauge 3/8″ to 2″ Air Brad Nailer: 3
-18 ga nailer. People really rip on this one. It was jamming on me for a while. I kept trying to oil up the hammer, but it would jam again. I finally removed the entire piston assembly (allen bolts through the exhaust vent cap) and oiled it up well and it’s worked great ever since. $15 nailer!!!

New Good-Enough Items with One Mention
Getting on the “Good-enough” list isn’t tough for Harbor Freight tools – they just have to have a single mention from someone. This doesn’t mean they’re great, just that one person had a good experience with them.

New Bad, But Buyable Items
If you’re a hacker/DIY type then these tools might serve you well. Just figure out an hourly rate for yourself and then add an hour of work to the cost of these tools ;)

-If you want a cheep 18 gauge nail gun for a weekend woodworker, buy HF and tweak it to work well … (I have done this with my HF air nailers and they work fine for friends that want to borrow my tools…. that way the Senco and Bostich guns stay in the shop!!)
-Pittsburgh wrenches: Wouldnt recommend. Just junk wrenches you dont mind abusing. Chrome on your arms if you wrench too hard. Good warranty though.
-Hand operated well pump
-HF biscuit joiner
-stationary power tools

New Abysmal Items
These items are no-buys under any circumstances… unless of course they show up on the “Good-Enough” list ;) That’s the enigma of Harbor Freight – one man’s “Abysmal” is 4 guys’ “Good-Enough.”

Harbor Freight #97427 Dual Dowel Jointer is worth looking at. Manual say 1 5/16 between drill center but is actually 32 mm. Great for system holes on cabinets. The drills that come with it are tool steel and not very good. Purchase a variable speed control item #43060-4VGA to slow it down. 16.5K to fast for anything but carbide. The fence has to be shimmed to square and the height setting is difficult (scribe a line on fence after setup)Freud at $399 is the next price point for this tool. Once dialed in the HF unit works great and for $60 can’t beat the price

15″, 18″, 24″ Jumbo adjustable wrench sethttp://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=751
ITEM 751-4VGA Is a great deal, especially when it goes on sale or with the usual 20% email coupons.
The jaw capacities aren’t quite as big as i would hope, but they do come in handy when trying to break free a big ass bolt or union.

Magnetic Parts trays are also a steal at harbor freight (various item number 4″, 6″, 9 1/2″). I carry the 4″ in my toolbag to hold screws when taking apart things, the magnet is very strong.

1 1/4 gallon sprayer for $10, goes on sale for $8 with a coupon. Great buy, Ive been using it with harsh chemicals and its held up pretty well. I just make sure to rinse it out after each use. The 1 1/4″ gallon size is perfect, not too big and has a sturdy base that doesn’t tip over.http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95692

I have been buying Harbor Freight tools for nearly ten years. My first purchase was when my one-year-old, $80 Dewalt 4″ grinder went belly-up. I almost bought a new Dewalt, but saw a Harbor Freight ad for a 4″ grinder for $15. I thought, “I can buy four of these cheap ones for less than one Dewalt and then throw them away when they crap out”. That was almost ten years ago; I still using the first one and the other three are still new in the box. Sure, I’ve had my horror stories with cheap Harbor Freight tools, but remember when you buy a cheap tool, don’t expect the quality and performance of high end, expensive tools: i.e. a $5 Pittsburg wrench does not compare to a $150 Snap-on wrench (duh)… same thing goes for $15 nailers mentioned here; don’t compare them to $180 nailers: if you want the performance of of a Bostitch nailer, stop your whining about cheap tools, blow the dust off of your wallet and buy a bostitch.

I have the 10 inch compound miter sliding saw. Just add a better saw blade and it is a decent tool. It is durable I redid a ton of work in my home with it. for 70 bucks on sale it is good. you will need a better blade for cleaner cuts.

Item 95977-2VGA water pump. I used a straight 4hrs/day twice a week for one summer for irrigation. So far it’s a winner. I changed oil at least three times in that period. Doesn’t take that much straight 30 weight, so why not? Engine combustion acids are what kills engines. Mine is the 5.5 hp. They claim the 6.5 is now on that model. Watch HF for their frequently screwed up descriptions of product.

PLEASE KEEP ME ON YOUR MAILING LIST. NEAREST STORE 45 TO 60 MIN DRIVE ONE WAY. OPEN A STORE BETWEEN METAIRIE LA STORE AND BILOXI MS STORE SAY AROUND SLIDELL LA ….OH THATS WHERE I LIVE. THAT WOULD BE GREAT. BY THE WAY SAW YOUR DISTRIBUTION CENTER OFF THE INTERSTATE IN AL GA OR SC, CAN’T REMEMBER. STOPPED AND GOT A PICTURE OF IT AND ONE OF ME WITH IT IN THE BACKGROUND. IT HANGS IN MY WORK SHOP. THANKS

I have purchased every air tool Harbor freight has ever had in last 10 years and every one of them are excellent I have also purchased motorcycle hig`h lift hydrolic puller set and numerous other items to date I have never had a issue with any tools from harbor freight they exceed all they are advertized for when properly used to manufactors specifications EARTHQUAKE air tools exceed most name brand tools including Snap On Craftsman NitroCat ETC ETC. Harbor Freight excellent job keep it up

I love Harbor Freight! Sure, they sell cheap tools but anyone who works with their hands and knows materials can pretty much tell where a tool needs work or improvement and can repair most HF tools if necessary, and can spot right away the ones to avoid.

Most of the faults of many of the tools are just poor machining and a few parts/fasteners that have bad metalurgy. Those can usually be fixed with a bit of filing or shaping -and replacing cheap fasteners with good ones if they break. As far as tool marks on the wrenches and things like that it is mostly just cosmetic. The tools are a bit ugly, but the Chinese metallurgy has come a long ways -and most of the Pittsburgh hand tools have a lifetime guarantee now -just save your receipts! It’s best to photocopy them right away before they fade away into blank white paper and save them in a big manila envelope fastened to the top of your toolbox with a HF magnet! That’s what I do.

One thing I didn’t see in the blog is talking about prices. The prices at HF are going up and are no longer universally low. The trick it to only buy stuff when it is ON SALE. That is their new business model. You see something on sale and don’t really need it but you foresee a time when you WILL need it so you have a choice to either buy it NOW or wait until you really need it and have to pay the high non-sale price.

Just BUY it now at $1.99 or $4.99 or whatever. It’s an investment insurance policy. You know you’re going to need it eventually…

And their “Inside Track” club is a $30/year membership but the coupon deals they send you in emails make even their normal great deals/sales look terrible in comparison. I paid for the $30 membership the second time I visited the store a week after I bought the card. It’s WORTH it.

That $99 black 3/4 horse compressor is a GREAT bargain. The only issues are that it comes without ANYTHING (not even the oil to fill it -it takes a whole quart so don’t forget to buy enough compressor oil!). It’s a good thing that the air tool stuff is cheap too. You need some hose, some quick connects, and one of their dryer/filter/oiler setups. You have to re-plumb it with new fittings to get the air output out to the side rather than the front but it is worth it. With another $20-40 in parts/supplies this $99 is still a great deal. Finding some better wheels is a good idea too. The ones that come with it are total crap. HF has lots of wheels cheap. I’ve got big ball-bearing wheels on mine with a locking caster wheel in front -HUGE improvement rolling this thing around the shop.

Also, what is with that weird plastic and rubber smell? If they could do something about that and the cheesy orange color of a lot of their plastic tools they would have a lot more customers I think.

I’ve started to like that smell though -it smells like a bargain to me ;)

I got the ratch bar clamps. Finally squeezed to hard and broke one. Took the side cover off. The handle to squeeze rides on a round platic bushing that is part of the frame. I super glued it back on. Drilled a hole thru the bushings that matched its ID. Put a little bolt thru the side with a lock nut. Better then ever now. Bushing has support and will not break off the side covers. Easy fix.

hi there the flash lights i got were given to the childern and thay say there just great. what i am talking about are the 31/2″ nine led lights, i got eight of them , thay sure last a long time,, thank you. John

I’ve been using H/F things since they were only a mail order outfit in Calif. I still have much of what I’ve purchaced over the yrs. Granted there is some real junk there, but if you know what you’re looking for and the limits of what you buy, you should be O.K., I have 4 of the 4″ grinder/sanders, a heat gun, tarps, wheels for equipment, but things like so-called “left hand” drills that have the tips ground for regular right hand rotation are the kind of things you need to look for. Also the $99. wire feed welder is a big hunk of junk, it requires a level of skill that 20 yrs. of race car building and Maintenance hasn’t taught me.

Wow! I never realized there was so much info on HF. 3/8″ corded and cordless drills are a good price. 4 1/2 inch angle grinders are cheap enough to have one for grinding and one for cutoff. 2/10/55 battery charger quit after a month or so.

I will NEVER buy another ‘tool’ from Harbor Freight. If I need something but can’t afford to buy a good one, I will go without. Their priducts are the worst of the worse and Customer Service is NON existent to wit:

I tried to see if I could get a replacement vise. I intentionally bought one with the Pipe Jaws and realized a few days out of warranty when I finally needed to put pipe in it that the casting was bad and there was no pipe jaw on one side. I tried to plead my case to their CS and was told more or less; Gee that’s too bad but it’s out of warranty! Any decet place would have seen that is was an obvious manufacturing goof and covered it anyway.

Today, my motorcycle lift got stuck and I determined that it was the release valve. I couldn’t get it fixed so I called to see if I could buy a complete replacement hydraulic jack. I gave them the model number and was told “That’s an obsolete item and no parts are available”, I’ll look it up, but I THINK there is a law about parts availability for CONSUMER ITEMS for x years.

Oh well. All you folks who think they are great (I was one for many years) will get burned by them eventually. There are some decent things coming out of China, and then there is the cheap crap. Harbor Freight dels in the cheapest junk they can buy.

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